The Old Fashioned holds a rare distinction: it’s the only cocktail to ever rival the Martini in popularity. Many trace its name to Louisville’s Pendennis Club in the 1880s. Albert W. A. Schmid traces the drink’s history through its core ingredients — rye or bourbon whiskey, sugar, bitters, and orange zest.
Schmid, who teaches at Louisville’s Sullivan University and won a Gourmand Award for The Kentucky Bourbon Cookbook, also digs into the drink’s surprising ties to the Waldorf-Astoria and Broadway. It’s a quick, entertaining read packed with recipes and lore for any bourbon or cocktail fan.
Published 2013
128 pages
$13.93